Felt Like a Holiday

The sun came out yesterday. It was a pleasant surprise considering the forecast has been calling for rain almost everyday for the last two months. It was supposed to rain yesterday too. Thinking that it wouldn't last, we took advantage of the first sign of summer and headed out to my favorite place in New Jersey--the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area.

Unfortunately, we got a late start and didn't get to spend too much time hiking around. But it got us out of the house for half a day, and that's what we really needed.

I forgot the information center was the opposite way off of I-80, so we didn't have a map of the park or a trail map. We stopped to pick up both on our way back home for the next time we head a little westward, which I hope will be soon.

It's definitely more pleasant to head out to the Delaware Water Gap during the week when very few people are around. However, more people serves the purpose of scaring the black bears away from the trails.

Rainforest Rendezvous

During our time in Penang, we took a day to walk through Penang National Forest, known locally as Tolek Bahang Forest. This is a small rainforest on the edge of the island with trails that go around. The signs at the entrance to the park do not accurately indicate distance or time it will take to walk through--we chose to walk to Monkey Beach, which is supposedly 45 minutes (but everyone else said an hour and a half).

We took our time to wander along--the first part of the trail is fairly easy, it got more difficult a bit before we reached a beach with a university that was a little more than midway to Monkey Beach. From there is was difficult to find the trail again, but we managed.

Until arriving at Monkey Beach, we only met one couple that was returning from the interior of the forest. Quite a few tourists take a boat to and from the beach and spend the day on jet skis.

The only downside to the hike was that we were not adequately prepared. It was, of course, hot and humid, without any rain to cool us off. We also should've brought something other than water--something with a little sugar in it to keep us going. But we did make it.

Rather than return the way we came, we paid 70 Ringgits to take the boat back to the park entrance and our ride to Georgetown. Ramli, the boat driver, immediately knew that we weren't walking back after seeing us soaked in sweat and downing whatever cold drinks were on offer on the beach.

I still think the highlight of the trip was watching the monkeys steal all the food from a scooter left on the trail, not far from the entrance. They did manage to break open the plastic containers to eat what was not meant for them.

Hiking the Wall

We began the day at a section of the Great Wall to the west of Beijing. It was far enough out of the way from the Badaling section that it wasn’t crowded, but it was still touristy enough to be well kept over the years.

Our sorry excuse for a tour guide told us that we’d have ample time to climb the wall and capture the views. An hour and a half was what she gave us. I began thinking it would’ve been better if my parents and I had taken the city bus to walk the Wall ourselves--we would’ve learned just as much history from a travel office brochure as the girl speaking Chinglish gave us.

Mom and Dad didn’t look pleased staring up at the steep steps of the Wall. I knew they wouldn’t make it far before turning back. I took the bare necessities (my camera and wallet) and sped off ahead of the group. Unfortunately, I left behind my water bottle with my parents. That mistake cost me six kuai about half and hour later.

At the third tower along the Wall was a shop that sold certificates stating, “I climbed the Great Wall,” and an engraved name and date for about 80 kuai. It seemed that almost everyone stopped here for a breather and to head back down the mountain. I gazed up toward the peak and noticed the crowd dwindle with each step--that was where I wanted to be.

At the fifth tower, I was sweating profusely and a cool breeze was blowing past me. I stopped to re-hydrate with an over-priced bottle of water. I conversed with a European couple attempting to purchase a T-shirt. The gentleman didn’t realize that Chinese sizes run much larger. I explained that in the U.S. I wore a medium size, but in China my size ranged from XXL to XXXL. They laughed and purchased their enormous, foreign-sized souvenir shirt, thanked me for my help, and headed back down the steps.

At the sixth tower, I was exhausted. I met a nice university student from Fujian Province with limited English skills to match my Chinese. He graciously took a photo for me and I returned the favor. I was tempted to head back in exhaustion, but the student coaxed me into going further with him and his companions.

I took another short break at the seventh tower and began climbing to the eighth—the last tower I was convinced I would make considering it was at the peak. After a couple steps up, I glanced at my watch. I had only a half hour to make my way back down the mountain. I grudgingly turned back and hurried my steps.

Back at the second tower, I was confronted by an older Indian tourist who asked, "How much further is it?" "Depends how far you want to go," I responded. His son found this answer much more amusing than he did. I elaborated, "Well, most people buy their souvenirs and head back after the next tower. But I made my way up to the seventh." The older man didn’t appear to want to trek that far up the mountain.

I arrived at the bus just in time for our scheduled departure only to discover that we would be delayed by another half hour--enough time for me to have gone all the way to that elusive eighth tower.